Here's an unsettling photo showing the aftermath of a strike on Wednesday: A man gestures as he calls for help at a site hit by what activists said was an air strike from forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Tareek Al-Bab area of Aleppo, December 18, 2013. REUTERS/Saad Abobrahim

Map of Aleppo locating districts hit by Syrian Army's "barrel bombs" that killed 76 people on Sunday. Reuters Rebels believe that the super intense air campaign, which is causing many civilians to flee to the countryside, could be the setup to a government ground offensive against the opposition-held half of the city.

The intended effect is to "let the population taste a nightmare version of freedom which would conceivably lead many people to choose Assad's rule as the lesser evil," Victor Kotsev of the Asia Times explained in January.